With love, Sodapop Curtis
by lexi.in.wonderland16
Summary: When Sodapop gets drafted into the Vietnam War, he leaves Andie, his new girl behind. This is her story of how she fell in love with a soldier. Previously titled "Colors."
1. Prologue

It was so much simpler when we were all children, before we all grew up. When the worst thing that could possibly happen was someone stealing your cookies at snack time. No matter what, you would always go home to find your mother and father waiting there and you always knew that they loved you. Nothing in the world was evil or bad to you. When you were young, everything was new and exciting. You couldn't wait to grow up.

Then, when you grow up, things change. You realize that people lie and the world is full of cheaters. Your mother and father aren't always there to lift you up when you fall, usually, you have to force yourself up, or just lie there. You start to realize that life can actually really suck sometimes. You wish that you could go back to being a kid again.

He taught me that life isn't always bad. He taught me that life doesn't start to suck when you get older; it just gets harder. Life throws challenges at you, and you need to face them and show them who's boss. Most importantly, he was there when no one else was, and to think, it all started when he staked out my house for a whole night.


	2. Cookies

He was the first person that I met when my mom and I moved to Tulsa. It was only about an hour and a half drive from where we had been living in Noxie, Oklahoma. The bank had come earlier that morning and told us we had to leave. It was almost funny, actually. When the bank takes your house, they literally take it. You have a few hours to pack your things, and then you have to leave it all behind. Whatever you can't fit you can't take. That's what happened to my mom and I.

When the accountant came, we –well I- packed as much of the necessities that I could fit into our small car: a few pairs of clothes, some food, and whatever else I could find that would fit. Trust me when I say it wasn't much.

With the car packed, I drove my mom and I to the first rest stop I could find and pulled over at my mother's demand. She went in and didn't come out for another hour. How she got all of the money for the pay phone I have no idea, but she had to have been making a lot of calls. She eventually got a hold of my uncle who had a place here in Tulsa he would rent out to us until we got back on our feet again. He was the only person who had space, so to Tulsa we went.

The house was modest, but most importantly fully furnished. I had worried about that when mom told me she had a place. There was no way we could afford any new furniture, we barely had any at our old house. There were only three rooms and a very small bathroom. You walked in and were in the combined kitchen and living room area where I would probably be spending most of my time. To the left were two bedrooms, one for my mom and one for me. Next to them, the bathroom. Like I said, modest.

I was unpacking the small amount of possessions we had when he showed up on our porch. Usually, I would of yelled for him to go away, but when I walked to the door to find a seventeen-year-old boy dressed in an apron holding a plate of green cookies, I couldn't resist letting him in.

"Sorry about the mess, I haven't really had time to unpack," I told him, clearing a spot off the couch for us to sit. He put the cookies down on the table. I didn't take one.

"That's alright," he said, "I didn't really give you much time to unpack."

"So, what's with the green cookies?" I asked at last.

"Oh, that's my signature. Green food. Ask anyone who has been to my house when I'm cooking dinner and they'll tell you the same thing," he smiled. I don't think he could ever frown, he seemed so happy.

"Nice," I said, taking a cookie. They actually tasted pretty good.

"What's your name?" He asked me, staring me down while I ate. I swallowed down the chunk of cookie I had eaten, and told him.

"Andrea," I said, quietly. I hated my name so much, when I was eighteen, it was getting changed.

"That's a pretty name," he said, "I'm Sodapop."

"That's different," I said, not trying to be rude.

"My dad was a different kind of guy…" he trailed off, "My brother's name is Ponyboy," he added carefully.

"I wish my dad were that cool," I said, laughing, "He's a lawyer. Very boring and conformed."

"Does he make a lot of money?" Sodapop asked, "I've heard that they're supposed to be socials or somethin' like that."

"I would like to think so," I said.

"Then why are you living in a grease neighborhood like this? Shouldn't you be on the other side of town?" He asked. I shook my head.

"My dad left us about a year ago," I said, "This isn't even our house," I scoffed.

"Oh, I'm sorry…I had no idea…" he trailed off, but was cut off by my mother screaming my name from her bedroom.

"I think it's time for you to go," I said to Sodapop, who was looking at me, pleading to help in some way.

"My brother has nightmares a lot, I could help…"

"You need to leave," I demanded, and pushed him out the door. I felt terrible for doing so, but I didn't need him here when my mom was high like this. I barely knew the guy, and with my luck, he'd probably call social services.

I walked into my mom's room when I was sure he was gone and looked down on her frail body lying on the bed that had no sheets yet.

_It was just a nightmare, _I told myself, _only a nightmare._

I walked back out into the living room and grabbed an old quilt out of one of the boxes. My grandmother made it for me when I was a baby, but I never got rid of it. It was the one thing I don't think I could ever give up.

I laid the quilt back on my mom and walked into the kitchen. As soon as I sat down, I heard another knock on the door. I groaned and got the plate with the cookies on it, expecting the visitor to be Sodapop wanting the tray back. I slid the cookies on another plate I had brought and went to answer the door.

"Sorry about that, here you-" I stopped talking when I realized the man at the door wasn't Sodapop at all, although I wished it were him.

"No please, continue," the man said.

"Never mind," I groaned, and got out of the way so he could come in. My uncle was the last person I wanted to see right now.

"Such a warm welcome for your favorite uncle!" He said sarcastically.

"You're my only uncle," I grumbled, "want a cookie?" I asked him, holding up the plate.

He laughed; "No thank you, I was actually looking for your mother…" he looked around.

"Already passed out and in bed for the night," I said.

"Still a junkie?" He asked, jokingly.

"How do you think we lost our house?" I asked him.

"Well, your father _was_ the only one who was really working if I remember correctly," he laughed, "Your mother could never hold a job, even before Mac died."

"She has a job, I have a job, and Mac's dead so leave him out of this. If mom wasn't a junkie we could at least make ends meet," I snapped.

"Barely," he scoffed, and I wanted to punch that clean face of him. He thought he knew how to work hard, but he didn't know the half of it.

"Anyways, I need to get going. _If_ your mother wakes up, tell her to call me," he said, stressing the _if._ He had made it clear that he didn't think she would live to see forty.

"With what?" I asked him.

"Your boyfriend out front should have something, he looks pretty well off," he said, walking out the door, "better than you anyways."

They say you should count to ten before you storm off at someone, so that's what I did. I didn't go out and attack my uncle no matter how bad I wanted to. He wasn't bad, but his higher than thou attitude _really _got on my nerves.

"Let's see what's behind picket number one!" I said, looking over the painted picket fence that surrounded the house. Sure enough, Sodapop was sitting there with his knees pulled up to his chest. He looked at me with a smile and waved, knowing he was in trouble.

"I wasn't sure if you would need me or not, and I wanted to be here just in case," he explained, standing up.

"How long were you planning on staying here?" I asked him, not believing what was happening.

"Until I knew that you were going to be okay," he said, looking at the ground.

"You are too sweet," I said, smiling. He smiled back at me again, happy that he hadn't offended me.

I'm not really sure how long we stood there, but it felt like all time stopped when I looked in to his handsome eyes. There were no worries, nothing to think about except him. How beautiful he was. How kind he was. How perfect he was.

"Soda!" I heard someone yell, and Sodapop looked up in shock, grabbing me instinctually.

"Sorry," he said, quickly letting go once he realized how hard he was holding my arm.

"It's okay," I said, "I think your friends are looking for you," I pointed out.

"I guess they are," he said, not moving at all.

"Well, don't let me get you into any trouble, go ahead. I'll be safe for tonight," I smiled.

"The damage is already done," he said, "Plus, you've got my cookie tray. I kind of need it back by dinner time."

"Oh, shoot!" I said, running back inside knocking over several boxes in my way.

"Here you go!" I yelled as I ran back outside, tripping on the front steps on the way to him and landing on the ground, the metal tray crashing beside me.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sodapop asked me as he pulled me up off the ground. His eyes kept going back and forth between me and the guys, and it was obvious I had just completely embarrassed myself. I jumped up off the ground and out of Sodapop's arms, making sure I was completely balanced before talking.

"Yep! I'm fine, just fine! Man, that was embarrassing…" He started laughing, and a couple guys in the truck did too. Great, this day just gets better and better.

"You know what?" I said to Sodapop, "You go off with your buddies there, and I'll stay here and catch up with you lot later."

"That sounds good," Sodapop said, and hugged me before running off to the truck and hopping in the back.

"And don't let me catch you staking out my house anymore!" I yelled at him as the truck drove off, sure that he didn't hear me.

"Whatever you say, Andie!" He yelled back, barely audible. I couldn't believe that he had just called me Andie. Usually, it wouldn't be a big deal, but the last time someone called me that was my father minutes before he walked out on my mother and I. It was the last thing he called me.

I walked inside to an even bigger mess of boxes because of the explosions caused from me knocking them over. I looked in the fridge and realized that we had no food except for the cookies that Sodapop brought over. I walked over to the kitchen table and grabbed the keys to the car along with my somewhat empty wallet. Whatever money I had in there was going to have to be enough to by some groceries for the week. If not, I guess I would have to find Sodapop and have him make some more cookies.


	3. Not so Bad

**Disclaimer**: I do not own The Outsiders

Chapter 2

The grocery story wasn't too busy, so I was easily able to get there and back home quickly. I didn't get pulled over by any cops, which was also good because I didn't have my license. I could never afford any "legal" lessons even though I was plenty old enough to learn.

When I got home, the first thing I saw was a note taped to the front door:

_Dear Andie,_

_Meet me bye the west lot at 5_

_S._

Normally, I would care that someone named "S" put a random note on my door, but I had a feeling I knew who it was, so I ignored the note – for now – and went inside.

I unpacked the coffee maker and coffee filters from one of the boxes and put them both on the counter. We should have sold it to make some extra money, but my mom insisted that we kept the stupid coffee maker. Apparently, it gets rid of her hangovers. Who knew?

I poured the water into the coffee maker and unpacked the groceries –milk, eggs, bread, peanut butter, and cheerios -while I waited for the coffee. I poured the coffee into a mug that I found in the cabinets, poured some milk into it, and brought it to my mom's room.

"Mom?" I asked, stepping into the dark room. The shades were all pulled down and the lights were off, making it relatively hard to see my way around with the only light coming from the living room.

When she didn't answer, I put the coffee mug down on the side table and went back out to the kitchen. I poured a glass of water and grabbed some aspirin from one of the boxes. I left the water and aspirin on the table next to the coffee, knowing she'd be needing it later when the hangover took over.

I went outside and grabbed the note on the door. I was supposed to meet "S" down at the lot at 5:00. That left me about an hour to get ready.

I went through most of the boxes until I found the one that had my clothes in it. I brought the box into my room and emptied everything onto my bed. I looked for a halfway decent outfit, and settled on a nice shirt and a pair of jeans with no holes or rips in them. I hoped that it would be good enough for whatever events were planned for the night, because I had no idea what we were going to do. Was he taking me out to dinner? Are we going to a rumble? Who knows?

I walked back out of my bedroom and found a bunch of sticky notes in one of the drawers. I pulled out a pen and left a note for my mom:

_Mom-_

_Went to park, took the car keys. Marty said to call him when you wake up. Please stay out of trouble…_

_Love,_

_Andrea_

I grabbed the car keys and walked outside. Normally, I would have left them there and walked, but since I knew mom was going to be messed up when she woke up, I took them with me even though I wasn't going to drive so she wouldn't drive off and get herself killed, or worse.

I walked down to the lot, which surprisingly wasn't that far, and saw none other than Sodapop standing there with a bunch of roses in his hand.

"Well, this is a surprise," I said, walking over to him, "I never imagined you as the romantic type!"

"Yeah well, it was either this or goin' over to your house and serenading ya," he said, looking embarrassed, "Here, these are for you," he said.

"Thank you, they're beautiful," I smiled, smelling them. They smelled amazing. No one had ever given me flowers before, never mind roses.

"Anyways," Sodapop said, looking at his watch, "It's almost 5:30, and I've got dinner reservations, so we should get going."

"Are we walking?" I asked.

"No, my-well, Darry's truck is parked on the other side of the lot," he explained.

"Who's Darry?" I asked him.

"My older brother, he's twenty, so he knows about this stuff," Sodapop said.

"Was he the one in the truck this morning?"

"Yeah, that was him, alright. I was almost late getting back to work; I visited you on my lunch break."

"You don't go to school?" I asked him, almost with disappointment. I was enrolling on Monday, unfortunately. I just wished that he could be there…

"No, I dropped out when my parents died so I could work full time. We needed the money, still do."

"I know what you mean, I wish I could drop out so I could work more. Clearly, we're in need of some Benjamins," I laughed, but I was serious. If I could drop out, I could be making so much more money. The only problem is that Social Services investigate that stuff, and I know if they investigated me I'd be sent to a state home within the hour. My mom wasn't the ideal parent, as you can probably tell.

"Don't drop out, I was stupid. I wasn't goin' nowhere anyway. Might as well be doin' something useful," he said, as we reached the truck. He opened the passenger's door for me and I climbed in, shaking off his attempts to help me in.

"You really shouldn't be spending all this money on me," I told him once we were in the car. If he was having the same problems I was, the money probably could've been used for something a lot better.

"Na, it's fine. It's my personal stash anyways. Probably would've gone towards my next girlfriend anyways," he said.

"That's sweet," I said. He had a personal stash for his girlfriends, "Well, I guess if it's okay with you, it's okay with me," I said, smiling.

"Andie, I'm the one who made the reservations! Do you honestly think I would've been spending money on you if my brothers needed food?"

"I guess not," I said, almost frowning after hearing my nickname again. _It shouldn't matter, _I told myself, _this is Sodapop, not Dad. _

"Are you okay?" Sodapop asked me.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Perfect," I added at the end.

"Fine, whatever, don't tell me. It's cool," he said, sniffling as if he were to start crying at any minute.

"The last person to ever call me Andie was my father before he left. It's stupid that I'm upset over it, I know, but it still gets me sometimes. I'm not really used to anyone else calling me Andie yet," I explained, trying not to be rude about it.

"Oh, if you don't want me to call you Andie, I won't, just tell me. I'll just have to find a new nickname for ya!" He smiled. I did too.

"Please, call me Andie. I like the way it sounds when you say it," I told him, looking into his gorgeous blue eyes.

"Good, because I think it's a lot more interesting than _Andrea_," he said, saying Andrea in a weird voice. I smacked him on the shoulder, not caring that he was driving.

"Ow, what was that for?" He asked.

"It was my grandmother's name!" I said, laughing.

"Sorry, grandmother Andrea," he said, looking up to the sky, "I've got nothing against the name, it just doesn't suit your granddaughter very well, so I'm going to call her Andie. I hope that's okay with you!" I cracked up and he smiled the biggest smile I had ever seen.

"Focus on driving, you weirdo," I said, giggling a little. It was that moment that made me realize that Tulsa wouldn't be so bad after all. I felt so happy when I was with him. He made me feel like I was on top of the world. He made me feel, period.


	4. El Chico's Cafe

**Disclaimer: **I do not own _The Outsiders_ or El Chico's Café. I actually took the name and made up the interior restaurant. If anyone has actually been there and would like to tell me what it's actually like, I would appreciate it.

Chapter 3

We pulled up to the restaurant about five minutes later. It wasn't that far away. It didn't look that fancy either, which made me feel better. I would never admit it, but I really didn't want Soda spending all of this money on me. He was so stubborn, though.

"Here we go!" Soda said, stepping out of the truck and coming over to my side to let me out. He was very romantic that way.

"So what is this place called again?" I asked, looking around for a sign that I couldn't find.

"El Chico Café, pure Mexican food," he smiled, taking my hand. It was a little awkward at first, but I didn't really mind it all that much so I went along with it.

"Mexican? That's new," I said.

"Why, do you not like it?" He asked, stopping in his tracks, actually looking concerned.

"I don't know, I've never had Mexican food before," I said. Truth was, I haven't had much of anything before, "I'd really like to try it, though," I added on at the end. Soda's smile grew again.

"I think you'll really like the food here," he said, "It's my favorite place. It's so colorful, just like me!" He joked.

"Don't get too full of yourself," I said, laughing.

"Can I help you?" The waitress interrupted.

"Oh, sorry…" Sodapop trailed off awkwardly, flashing me a smile, "I have a reservation for Curtis," He said, politely. It was a new side of him.

"Of course, how many?" She asked.

"Two," he answered.

"Okay, right this way," she said, and walked us to our table.

Soda was right; this place _was_ colorful. It was full of not only the traditional Mexican colors, but many other colors as well. It was bright and lively, something I wasn't necessarily used to.

"Do you like it?" Sodapop asked with a grin on his face.

"Yeah, it's something special," I said, laughing a little at my lack of description skills.

"I like it, but you already know that," he said, "wait until you try their food, it's amazing," he added.

"Hi, my name is Alicia and I will be your server today, can I get you some drinks?" Alicia asked.

"Yeah, I'll have a Coca-Cola," Soda said, and I almost laughed.

"I'll just have water," I said, keeping it plain.

"Alright, I'll be back in a few!" She said, way too happily. That was why I could never be a waitress: one, I could never put up with so many people, and two, I could never be that happy all the time.

"What's your favorite color?" Sodapop asked out of nowhere.

"Blue," I answered, not questioning him. I had known him for less than twenty-four hours and I already knew that the last thing you wanted to do was question Sodapop Curtis's motives.

"Nice choice," he said, "I prefer green myself."

"Does that have anything to do with the fact that my eyes are green?" I asked him, smiling. He could be such a flirt when he wanted to be.

"Maybe…" he trailed off.

"What are you getting?" I asked him the next question. Alicia was due to come back with our drinks any time now, and I doubt either of us had even looked at our menus.

"Um…I think I'm going to get the Grande Chicken Burrito," he said, looking at his menu. It didn't take him long, so I was pretty sure he already knew what he was getting before we even got here.

"What are _you _getting?" He countered.

"Probably a Chicken Fajita, keep it simple," I said.

"Sounds good," he smiled, "Favorite musician?"

"Elvis Presley, easily," I answered, I didn't listen to music all that much, but when I did it was The King.

"Same here, long live the king!" he shouted, just as Alicia was coming over with our drinks.

"Coca-Cola," she said, handing the Coke to Soda, "and a water," she said, handing the water to me.

"Are you ready to order?" She asked, looking at us.

"Yes, I'll have the Grande Chicken Burrito, please?" Soda said.

"Okay, and you Chiquita?" she asked me, letting her Spanish side slip for the first time.

"I'll have a Chicken Fajita," I said, and handed her my menu.

"Thank you," she said, and walked off.

"Do you have any siblings?" He asked me, stupid question.

"Nope," I said, "It's just me and my momma."

"I have two brothers, but with the rest of the gang, it feels like I've got six…four," he corrected.

"What happened?" I asked him.

"Nothing, it was a…miscalculation," he said, frowning, "I told you I was stupid. Don't even know how many boys are in my gang," he smiled again. It was so obvious that he was lying. I would figure it out later.

"So, you're in a gang?" I asked, "That's cool."

"Yeah, they'd love you, Darry's already bugging me about it all," he said.

"About what?" I asked.

"He thinks I like you," Sodapop said.

"Well, do you?" I asked, waiting carefully for an answer.

"I think I do," he said, and leaned in to kiss me.

It was that moment that I made the biggest mistake of my life. It was that moment that I let myself fall in love with Sodapop Curtis, and even though I don't regret it for one second, it was that mistake that lead to the worst day of my life.


	5. The Gang

After we kissed, we sat in silence for a few seconds. It was awkward, but it felt right. We never took our eyes off of each other.

"Wow," Soda said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah," I said. What else was there to say?

"You know what?" He asked, out of nowhere.

"What?" I said, still in a trance from kissing him. I had never kissed a boy – that I actually cared about – until this moment. It was different, but I liked it.

"I think I should take you to meet the gang," he smiled.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked him. I know that Darry liked me, well, that's what Soda says, but I wasn't sure about the rest of them.

"Yeah, it's a great idea. They want me to bring you over at some point, just wasn't sure how fast we were goin'."

"Well, I guess if they don't mind, it shouldn't be a problem," I told him, honestly a little worried about meeting his "family." I wanted them to like me so bad, it was weird.

"You need to ask your momma?" he said. Damn, I forgot all about her. I really shouldn't be leaving her alone for any longer, but another hour or so couldn't hurt, could it? I have the keys with me so she can't drive anywhere and I don't think Marty would be back to bother her yet.

"No, I'm pretty sure it will be fine," I said, not adding in any extra details like the fact that if I did bother asking, she probably wouldn't even know who I was.

"Alrighty, then. Hey, Alicia! Can we get a check over here?" He yelled to our waitress. She nodded, almost in an aggravated way, and walked away from the table she was working with to get us a check. He put the cash down and we got up and left.

When we got back into the car, he wrapped his arm around me while he was driving. I tensed up, and he took that as a bad sign.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking between my eyes and the road.

"Yeah, sorry, I'm fine," I said, and put his arm back around me. It wasn't that I didn't want it, I just wasn't used to the affection. He shrugged and kept driving.

His house was very quaint, not that much bigger than what Marty was letting my mom and I use. From the outside, it looked run down with the paint that was falling off, but you could tell that it was still neatly kept.

"I'm home!" Sodapop yelled as we walked inside. Immediately there was a swarm of teenage boys crowded around the two of us. I shrank back as an instinct, and Soda wrapped his arms around me again.

"It's alright, they don't bite," he whispered to me.

"Speak for yourself," one of the boys-the one with the Elvis hair-said.

"You'll keep your hands off of her if you know what's good for you, Two-Bit," Soda warned, bringing me in even closer to him. We still hadn't moved from the doorway.

"Well I guess it's a good thing I don't always know what's good for me," Two-Bit smiled, but backed off anyways.

"I told you that you liked her," another boy, well, man, came in. He looked young, but his face said that he was a lot older than what he looked. I would say mid-twenties to early-thirties probably. It had to be Darry, Soda's older brother.

"Yeah yeah," Soda said, and then turned back to me, "So for the grand introduction, this is Andrea, also known as Andie, and Andie, this is my older brother Darry, my younger brother Ponyboy, Two-Bit, and my friend Steve."

"It's nice to meet you all," I said, taking in all of the boys' looks so I could remember their names. Two-Bit was the Elvis kid, Darry was…Darry, Ponyboy was the youngest one with the young face, and Steve was the one who was closest in height to Sodapop and wasn't all that hard on the eyes. I got this.

"It's nice to meet you too, Andie," Darry said, stepping forward.

"So have you two hooked up, yet?" I heard Two-Bit yell from the living room.

"Not like that, you perve!" Soda yelled, "You've gotta look out for him, always got his head in the gutter. 'Specially when he's drunk," he added at the end, only for me.

"So you his girl now or something?" Steve asked me. How was I supposed to know? We kissed, does that make me his girl?

"I don't know, am I your girl, Sodapop?" I asked him, trying to make it funny.

"If you want to be baby, considering we've been macking all night, I wouldn't say no," he said, and I turned bright red. If I knew he was going to take it that far, I never would have asked.

"Okay, then yes, I'm Soda's girl now," I said, smiling, and I kissed Soda right in front of everyone.

"Keep it PG," I heard Darry say from somewhere.

I stuck around for a little while, getting to know the guys. Ponyboy was easily the quietest; he read most of the time. We talked a little about books, I was an avid reader myself, big surprise, but that was about it. I didn't want to bother him none. I chose to ignore Two-Bit for most of the night, I didn't like his attitude towards me. He was a fun guy; don't get me wrong, but all he wanted to know about me was my love life and if I was a virgin.

Darry disappeared and reappeared constantly throughout the night. I liked him; he was really nice in general and tried to make me feel comfortable as much as possible with all of the yahoos in the house. Steve was talkative, and mostly him and Soda talked about their cars. I tried to step in when I knew something, but that wasn't often so I usually just listened to them and Steve gave us some dating advice. It wasn't terrible.

At about midnight, I looked over at the clock and just about died. I needed to get home and fast. Ponyboy had already gone to bed, so Darry didn't bother telling anyone the time.

"Soda, I've got to get going. It's almost midnight, and my momma's gonna be worried," I said, lying a little. I was more worried about how I would find _her._

"Oh, yeah, sorry for keeping you out like this. Lost track of the time," he said, turning back to Steve, "I'll be right back," he said. Steve nodded and said goodbye, as did Two-Bit. Darry must have already gone to bed.

We pulled up to my house and I got out a little too quickly. I kissed Soda goodbye, and he said he would come by at some point tomorrow if he could get out of work. I really hoped that he did.

I went inside to see my mom and Marty arguing. Great, this was going to be fun.


	6. Drafted

We pulled up to my house and I got out a little too quickly. I kissed Soda goodbye, and he said he would come by at some point tomorrow if he could get out of work. I really hoped that he did.

I went inside to see my mom and Marty arguing. Great, this was going to be fun.

"It's obvious, Kathy, she shouldn't be living with you!" I heard Marty yell as I ran through the door.

"What the hell is going on?" I asked, shoving him away from my mom, who had tears falling down her face.

"Nothing, I was just leaving," Marty said, quietly.

"Yeah, you were," I said, staring at him as he walked out the door. As soon as he was gone, I turned to my mother.

"What was that all about?" I asked her. She looked down at the ground and mumbled something about her being tired. She got up and went to go back to bed, but I stopped her.

"Sit down and tell me why you and Marty were fighting!" I said, a little too harshly. The truth was, I was scared about the answer. I didn't really want to know, but if Marty was trying to break my mother and I up, I needed to.

"He's filing for custody," she said, quietly.

"…Of who?" I asked, cautiously. I knew what was coming now.

"You. He doesn't want you living with me anymore," she said, and walked off to her room.

I was in shock. No, not shock, this was much worse. Much, much worse. There was no chance that I was going to be able to stay with my mother if the state was going to do an investigation. The worst part wasn't even that I was being taken away from my mother. It wasn't all about her anymore, for once. It was about my relationship with my new friends, but more importantly, Soda. If the state did an investigation, they wouldn't hesitate to put me in the custody of Marty, and he wouldn't hesitate to take me as far away from my mother as he could. My life was doomed.

"Mom?" I asked, walking into her room. She was just sitting on her bed, almost catatonic. This was bad, this was really bad.

"Do you think I'm a bad mother?" She asked me, not turning her head.

"You're not perfect," I admitted, "but who is? You are better than a lot of mothers around here, just because you care about me. The fact that you're upset now proves that."

"But I'm not a good mother," she said, leaving no room for any conversation.

"You are to me," I said, hugging her. It wasn't a lie. I loved her so much, so much more than I let on. Sure, she had her setbacks, but she had never hurt me, and she had always been strict with me. She used to be a great mother, and a part of me wanted to believe that she was still like that somewhere. So many mothers these days don't care about their children, and they hurt them, but my mother thought the world of me. So what? She did some things that she shouldn't be doing, but she would never endanger me with them. Somewhere, she is still the woman that I remember. Loosing her would be impossible, and it might even kill her.

After I let go, I walked back out to the kitchen. I was going to wash dishes, but I couldn't bring myself to do anything right now. I didn't know how much time left I had with the people that I truly cared about. And it scared me.

_Knock Knock Knock _

I looked at the time on the clock in the living room and realized that it was already noon. I slept through the night and into the next day. Dammit!

"Hello? Is anyone home?" I heard someone yell from outside. It was Soda.

"Uh, one minute!" I said, and ran to check on my mom. She was asleep too. What time had we gone to bed last night?

"Hey," I said, opening the door. I saw Soda take one look at me and shock ran through his face.

"Are you okay?" he asked, taking my head in his hands and looking into my eyes. He was tracing something on my face.

"Yeah, why not?" I asked him.

"You're face is all red and your eyes are swollen," he said, "Were you crying?"

"I really don't want to talk about it," I said, walking back inside. I started washing the dishes that I had failed to do in the wake of last night's event.

"What happened, Andie," Soda said, turning me so I was facing him.

"Nothing, my uncle and I got in a fight, that's all," I said, lying through my teeth.

"You're a terrible liar, Andie," Soda said.

"Okay," I groaned, "I'll tell you, but only because you deserve to know."

"Okay…?" he prodded.

"My uncle is filing for custody of me. He doesn't think that my mother is a suitable guardian, and clearly the social justice system will agree with him. They will conduct an investigation that will lead to a full out trial. If we loose, I will be living with my uncle and I guarantee you I won't be anywhere near here."

Sodapop looked like someone just punched him in the face. Literally, I was pretty sure he stopped breathing.

"You can't leave," he said, "I just found you."

"I know," I said, hugging him. He grabbed me so tight I thought he was going to break me. I didn't really mind.

"Do you know how long?" he asked.

"No, it depends on the lawyers and how much of a fight he puts up. I would say that it would be a month at the least before the trial. Two months before I have to leave."

"Two months," he said, "damn."

"I know, but we don't have to let this ruin us. We have two months at the least, Soda. Let's make it last," I said, trying to be optimistic. Then, he just pulled out a letter, and tears started forming out of his eyes.

"No, Andie, we have two weeks," he said, handing me the letter.

_Dear Mr. Sodapop Curtis,_

_The United States Army regrets to inform you that you have been drafted to fight in the Vietnam War. You will report to basic training on February 15, 1970. It should also be noted that if you do not attend the assigned training and refuse to participate, you will be arrested. On behalf of the United States of America, we hope that you choose to fulfill your duty as an American citizen. Good luck._

_ Sincerely,_

_ President Richard Nixon _

"No fucking way," I said, dropping the letter on the ground. I had been on my own a lot lately, and busy taking care of my family, but I knew about the war. I knew that people died. I knew that people didn't come back. I knew that Soda going there would end in death for him.

I started screaming and throwing things around. I threw the king of temper tantrums. This couldn't be happening to me. Why did God hate me? What did I ever do to him? Eventually, Soda came up and grabbed me, stopping my rant. I punched him in the chest a couple times, but he held on. He wasn't letting me go.

"I know," he whispered in my ear, "I know."

He took the rest of the day off from work. We sat on my couch and just held each other. I cried most of the day, and even Soda shed a few tears. In two weeks it would all be over. I would never see him again. He would be a soldier.

"I will come home, Andie," he said after a little while.

"You don't know that," I said, "people don't come back from Vietnam."

"I will, you know why?" He asked, "I have the prettiest lady at home waiting for me."

I smiled a little bit, and he flashed his grin too.

"I have to go," he said, and tried to stand up, but I wouldn't let him.

"No," I said, "stay. Stay with me."

"I have to go make sure my brothers are all right," he said, trying to pry me off of him.

"You can't leave me," I cried. I wasn't letting him leave me.

"I will be back as soon as I can, Andie, you know I will. I love you so much, and no matter what happens in Vietnam, no matter what people tell you while I'm gone, I will always love you," He said, tears forming in his eyes.

"You don't mean that, we've only known each other for a week, less," I said, wiping the tears out of my eyes.

"Don't you believe in love at first sight? It's our very own Romeo and Juliet story, Andie. You and me. I don't care how long I've known you, but I've been looking for you my whole life. I love you; I wish I didn't have to let you go. You don't know how much I want to stay here with you, get married, have a family…"

"We can do that, we can do all of that," I said, "We can run away together, only us. Forever."

"Andie, I have a family too. They need me just as much as you do."

"Please, don't leave me," I begged one last time.

"I'll be back in the morning, I promise," he said, and kissed me on my forehead before walking out the door.

"I should never have let myself love you, Sodapop Curtis."


	7. Accepted

**Disclaimer: **I do not own _The Outsiders._

I didn't sleep that night.

I lay awake in bed, hoping, wishing, and even praying that somehow, someway, Soda wouldn't have to leave. I tried thinking of every possible way to get him to stay, but I knew it was impossible. The only legal way I could think of was hurting Soda so he couldn't serve, but I couldn't do that to him, and it would just ruin our relationship in the end.

Honestly, I wasn't even planning on getting out of bed. I didn't want to do anything, I just wanted to lie here and hopefully die before I had to say goodbye to Soda. I never wanted to say goodbye to him. Selfish, but true. Unfortunately, all of that changed when I heard a knock on my door. I started to get up to go get it, but then I heard Marty yell to me.

"Andie, you've got a visitor!" He yelled. Since when was he here? I certainly didn't want him here, not after last night.

"I'll talk to Soda in a minute," I told him. I didn't want to deal with this now. I didn't want to deal with this ever.

"Can I talk to you first?" I heard someone else say, and it happened to be Darry, Soda's older brother. What was he doing here?

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I need to talk to you about Soda without him around," he said, "Can I sit down?"

"Oh, yeah," I tell him.

"You look like hell," he told me.

"Yeah, so do you," I wasn't lying. Darry's eyes were all puffy and swollen, and he looked like a dog dressed him.

"I guess that's what happens when your brother tells you he's going to 'nam."

"I'm so sorry," I told him, and I felt really bad. I had no right to be moping about Soda when his brothers and friends much closer than me were going through the same thing.

"It's hard on all of us, which is one of the reason's why I'm here," he said, "Soda told me about your problem."

"Oh," I said.

"I don't want you to leave once Soda's gone. I know that you don't see it the way we do, and it's been such a short time, but Soda loves you."

"I would like to think so," I laughed a little, Darry did too.

"Yeah, I guess that came out weird," he said, "Anyways, he talks about you all the time, like you're his world. We all count you as part of the family, you know. I want you to know that even after Soda's gone to 'nam, you're still welcome with us."

"Thanks, that means a lot to me," I tell him, and it really does. I've never been welcomed anywhere outside of my home, and lately, I haven't even been welcomed there.

"Well, I think Soda's here, so I'm gonna take off. If you need anything, you know where to go," he says, and pats me on the back. I didn't realize how much Darry and everyone else really cared for me until that moment.

"Bye," I tell him, and I walk him back to the living room where Soda's waiting. Geez, Marty's just the grand usher today.

"What was that all about?" Soda asks when Darry's gone. I shake my head.

"Nothing," I tell him.

"Are you okay?" He asks me, kissing my forehead.

"No," I tell him.

"I'm so sorry, Andie, I never asked for this," He says, and tears started to form in his eyes.

"I know, it's okay," I tell him, crying a little too. "Let's just not talk about it. Live the next two weeks like nothing happened, and then we hope. And you fight for your life." I added on at the end.

"You can't just ignore this, Andie," he told me.

"I can try," I said. He shakes his head.

"Some things never change," He tells me, and carries me to my room.

"Keep the door open!" Marty yells. Screw him.


	8. More Than You Know

**I'm back! I would like to take this time to give some really good excuse about why I haven't been updating, but there really isn't, and for that I apologize. I will try and be better in the future. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: **I took a lot of this chapter from other books and TV shows that I've seen, so I'd like to recognize them. The first line is from _Vampire Academy, _the staring argument is from _Vampire Diaries (TV Show), _and of course, I do not own any of these, including _The Outsiders_.

I had never been completely naked around a guy before.

The feeling of knowing that Soda was mine, that this wonderful body of his was mine, was enough to comfort me when he started to take my clothes off. I knew that I would be in trouble for this later, but for now, the door was locked. And Marty wasn't my legal guardian. Yet.

I fell asleep shortly after, still naked in Soda's strong arms. It was the greatest night of my life. It would always be the greatest night of my life. And it would be the night that I would treasure most for the rest of my life. There was no doubt about that, not then, and not now.

I woke up the next morning to Soda's soft snoring beside me. I never thought anything in the world could be capable of the beauty that was Soda's innocent sleeping structure. I couldn't help but stare at him and the softness of his face, the beauty of his vague smile.

"Stop staring at me," Soda mumbled from his spot in the sheets.

"But you're gorgeous," I said, smiling and tracing lines down his muscular back.

"It's creepy," he said.

"It's romantic," I replied. He groaned and threw the pillow over his head in an attempt to hide himself from my glare. Eventually, he gave up and turned around to kiss me.

"Good morning," he said when we broke apart.

"Good morning," I responded, and then looked at my clock. It was already eight, which meant Soda was going to be late for work.

"I'm going to be late…" he told me, looking sorry.

"It's okay, go ahead. You don't need to be in trouble because of me."

"But I don't want to leave you," he said, taking my face in his hands. I pushed him away and got out of the bed. He didn't try to hide the fact that he was checking me out. I swiftly wrapped a towel around myself.

"Sometimes we need to do things we don't want to do, but they still need to be done regardless," I told him. He knew exactly what I was talking about.

"So you're okay with it? Just like that?" He asked, shocked.

"Not at all, but hundreds of other boys and men have to leave their families and girlfriends, just like you. Why should I be the lucky one? Moping isn't going to let you stay home, so I might as well enjoy my two weeks while I've still got them."

"That's very civilized of you Andie, I'm really proud of you," He said, getting up to hug me.

"I'm glad, now put some clothes on and get to work before Darry comes over here and throws a hissy fit," I told him throwing a pair of jeans his way.

"He wouldn't be able to find me," Soda said, pulling the jeans on.

"He's a lot smarter than you think, Soda," I told him, "He was here last night talkin' about you."

"What did he say?" Soda asked, intrigued.

"That you're crazy about me," I smiled and walked over to him.

"Really, what did he say?" I laughed.

"Mostly about how you wouldn't leave if you had the choice, and that I'd always have a place with you guys, no matter what happens," I said.

"I'm glad," Soda said, "They'll take care of you Andie, you just have to give them a chance."

"I know," I said, and walked up to kiss Soda.

"I've got to go, I'm gonna be late," Soda reflected, but kissed me anyways.

"Go," I said after a few minutes, "I'll stop by later."

"Okay, bye, I love you!" Soda said as he ran out of my room.

"I love you too," I whispered, "more than you'll ever know."

And then I broke into tears once more.


	9. The End

The next two weeks flew by. Soda and I spent just about every day together, and we made the most of it. We tried not to think about Vietnam, but whenever it came up, he would hold me and comfort me until I found peace again. I felt bad, always ruining the moment, but things were just too much for me right now. Marty was continuing to fight for custody of me, and he was winning. My mother was a drug addict, I knew she would lose. Everyone did. Whenever Sodapop and I were with the gang, they always looked at us with sad eyes. They were losing Soda, but they were losing me too. It was devastating.

In short, February 15 came too quickly.

The entire gang and myself were waiting with Sodapop for the bus to come that would take him away from us. I didn't know what was going to happen, but I was determined not to cry. There was a good chance that Soda was going to die, and this would be the last time I ever saw him. He needed to see me happy and smiling. He needed that to be his last memory of me, no matter what. I knew that everyone else was thinking the same way.

The bus pulled in and Sodapop knew he had to start saying his goodbyes. He went one by one through the gang, then came to his brothers. His brothers who had already lost so much. It wasn't fair that he was being taken away from them. It wasn't fair that after all they had been through, they were going to lose the one who had kept them together. I knew they were scared, and I was scared for them. Ponyboy started crying, and I could even see a few tears escape Darry's eyes. That's when I knew this wouldn't be a dry-eyed event.

"Andie," was all Soda said to me when he came to me. I looked over and Pony was clinging to Darry. I couldn't take it. I just couldn't.

"I don't know what to say to make you feel better, because I know that there's nothing, hey, look at me baby," Soda said, pulling my eyes to match his. "No matter what happens with the gang, no matter what happens with your mom, I need you to stay strong. No going off and doing stupid things because it makes you feel better, because in the end it won't. It will make you feel so much worse. You _can_ survive, baby. I know you can. When I come back, I need someone to come back to." He pulled something out of his pocket. "When I come back, I want to marry you Andie. I want to have a big wedding in a church with the gang by my side. I want to live the rest of my life with you, because the last month has been the best month of my life. We will live together and have babies and be happy, but only if you can hang on and hold onto this for me. I'll do this all the right way when I get back, okay?"

"You had to do this now?" I said, and ran up to hug him. I lost it. I burst into tears and I lost it. "I wanted to be able to smile today, so you could leave with me smiling, but I can't do it now."

" Just one last smile, baby, I know you can do it. You can be strong. You are the strongest girl I know. I love you so much, Andie." Soda said. The driver beeped the horn.

"I'm not raising your brother if you die, Sodapop Curtis. You don't need to be a hero. You fight, you come home, and you marry me. Do you understand?" I asked him, tears in my eyes.

"Yes, ma'am." He said, flashed me a goofy grin, waved to the guys one last time, and jumped onto the bus. There was not one dry eye except his.

That would be the last time any of us ever saw Sodapop Curtis and his goofy grin. The truth was, I would never be able to marry Soda, and I would end up raising his brother alongside Darry. For the longest time, I hated Soda for making me love him so damn much. Then I realized, that he showed me that it was possible to love people. That it was possible to trust. Two concepts that before I met him, I never really understood. They say that when someone walks into your life, that they are put there for a reason. The truth is, I don't want to know what my life would have been like without Soda. I don't like thinking about it. It scares me. All I know is that Soda has changed my life for the better. I can love now, and I can trust. I know I need to be strong because he is always watching me. He is always there, and he always will be. It hurts now, but I know that when I die and go wherever I'm meant to be, I will see Soda there. We will reunite with each other and fall in love again. I will meet his parents. We will be married and we will live happily ever after. Forever and ever and ever.

I finished the eulogy with tears in my eyes, but I was smiling more than I had smiled in a long time. Everyone else was crying as well, and Darry, Pony, Two Bit, and Steve had come up to hug me. They all understood. Soda was always going to be right here with us. Always. True, I missed the old days when the worst thing that could possibly happen was someone stealing your cookies at snack time. When no matter what, you would always go home to find your mother and father waiting there and you always knew that they loved you. When nothing in the world was evil or bad to you. That new and exciting feeling of being young, always waiting to grow up.

I miss growing up, learning through the hardships in my life. Sometimes I even miss being lonely. It was a feeling, if nothing else. I learned that people leave, and most don't come back. But there are some people that show up in your life that you have no choice but to love and adore. Sodapop was one of those people.

He taught me that life isn't always bad. He taught me that life doesn't start to suck when you get older; it just gets harder. Life throws challenges at you, and you need to face them and show them who is the boss. Most importantly, Sodapop was there when no one else was, and to think, it all started when he staked out my house for a whole night. God, how I wish I could go back to that night.


End file.
